Thursday, October 28, 2010

"We have been waiting patiently for this release and now that it's ready we float in naive peacefulness. Bedroom Bear is known in Russia for his previous more pop-oriented band raindear? and also participation in early Love Cult. Going solo played good for him resulting in well-concentrated childish loner trips. Tiny lo-fi samples, romantic teenage synth tones, little crackling and whistling. Everything recorded live straight to tape in a small village between Saint Petersburg and Karelia and mastered by Sergey Suokas. All artwork made by amazing Diana Vishnevskaya: home printed photographs, hand stamped text, unique cardboard packaging ocassionally sewn through with a thin thread, printed CDr. 85 copies." Full of NothingWe Have No Zen review

Cover drawing by Anya, manipulated by African "A live set from Russian duo Love Cult. The spirit of Karelian nature has soaked these tunes with Northern dreamy hazes and even obvious LUV's split in two halves seem to be instinctively adjusted to the natural dualism. It dawns with hopes and it's gone with ease. The opening untitled 20-minute murmuring improv goes from plucking a minimalistic yet colorful mantra towards a noisy crescendo, marking a kind of a stormy noon. Then great Somn brings a shadow of indistinct anxiety (if you already heard Love Cult, you'll be surprised by this much softer version of a track which brought 'em high-pitched reviews - earlier this year Somn featured on Cursillistas/Love Cult split release by Blackest Rainbow) and then the soothing twilights are back with the short untitled closure, which is Anya's solo attempt to mark the circle's circumference..." We Have No Zen

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Jozik records 2010 The first Banana Pill record is all about layers of synthesizer loops and droning guitar spiced up with some simple wind instruments and percussion. This EP has some serious shoegaze-like atmosphere with a bit of freaky-folky attitude. Comes in a nice hand-made fabric cover. Limited to 18 copies.

Monday, October 18, 2010

"Maybe it's the burnt engine oil stench of Moscow subway or life with ten million other people in one city, I don't know. But these rockers go wild on this split! Arabian Horsesare the duo that lay a few drones and slowly drum to them. Asian Women on the Telephone provide pure da-da noise-rock / no-fi kraut vibes. The overall atmosphere of this 90-minute cassette is like slow-moving schizophrenia. Pro-dubbed tapes in cases, torn Soviet-era wallpaper with chaotic watercolor print, hand signed. 65 copies." Full of Nothing

Saturday, October 16, 2010

"This is an eerie recording we have received from Moscow. The album is said to be the result of long isolation and silence; an attempt to get somewhere on mental/astral level. This is the therapy for "soul anorexia". Heavy, bizzare electronics, all recorded live. Imagine a wild ritualistic jam session, but with drum-machine and synths. Pro-dubbed tapes, kraft J-cards. 30 copies." Full of Nothing

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

"Can a shadow tell a story? Can light be cast from said shadows? Well this is what happens when one stares into the heart of Gretel’s ‘Casket’ LP. Gretel whirls you to a world occupied by nostalgia, the brothers Grimm and, Miyazaki. But instead of seven foot cats and cannibalistic old ladies we are greeted by folk visions of another distinct far away land: where is this land? This land is found in the shadows of youth all tense relevance abandoned like a great Dylan song or a Di Chirico painting. And like the sense of time you are abandoned to wonder was that just a shadow or was it something more sinister? Why are those cats screeching outside the adult in you tells a story of mating season, while the child destroys this false sense of security with images of hooded monsters pandering to pagan requests.
The sense of exploration compressed in this music is unsettling as we are drowned by pieces like ‘Formless’. It screams at us: ‘We are formless and all thought of form is just that’. When I think of this music as music then I am insulting my intuition and ignoring the feeling that I am being watched, because I know Gretel is watching right now as I check underneath the bed at the three minute mark in ‘Formless’. Voyeuristic paranoia tweaking the string section as hell is let loose and the woods are set on fire by the poem’s of Gretel’s elders.
‘Masked Ball’, piece number twelve on this LP, assures me that this is just thought and there is nothing here to really harm you. The last two pieces after ‘Masked Ball’, guide us safely out of the shadowy forest. But we must not forget what we saw on this journey. We must remember the shadows so we can tell are children and so as they can tell their children. For what is a child if the child doesn’t believe in shadows?" wtfmusic.org

Sunday, October 10, 2010

"Two guitarists, one drummer and hell of a lot of neo psychedelic space jam rock! Velvet Breasts are from Saint-Petersburg, Russia and spin some crazy webs of sound. Incredibly easy to listen to, no hard won hear prizes here its not Wolf Eyes more Teeth Of The Sea. Its scything soundscapes of acid tweets and freak out rock but also some real gentle subtle areas that climb mountains and build little towers of rocks at the top.

Their first record How Does It feel is available to download for free from their Myspace or if you want to take the short cut, from here.Their current record Ancient Dream can also be downloaded from their Myspace page for free and this link is the shortcut. Though I urge you to go buy the limited edition hand made CD from the TaqueOT Blog." Fokkawolfe blog

"Brand new split cassette from Portland, Maine based Cursillistas, who recently had superb LPs on Time-Lag and Digitalis, and Love Cult from Petrozavodsk, Russia. First up is Cursillistas epic 23 minute "Great Salt Desert", a superb weirded out blues drenched, desert dried, psychedelic mirage. A real fine side summing up how awesome Cursillistas are, if you haven't checked them yet, don't miss this side! The B side opens with Love Cult's "Breadcrumb Ponytail", a swirling blissful distortion dripping psyche dream, a really beautiful 11 minute wonder. This is followed by "Somn" a more crushing electrifying piece with tinkering and rattling from unrecognizable objects, distorted feedback blurts and what sounds like then objects trying to communicate. Limited to 100 copies with parchment paper (either gold or ivory) cover with black and white print." Blackest Rainbow

"I think I've enjoyed everything I've heard by Cursillistas (Time Lag/Digitalis) and the latest split cassettes with Love Cult on Blackest Rainbow is no exception. Portland, Maine's Matt Lajoie is the man that creates lush psychedelia with a kind of outsider folk influence. This 23 minute number is a mysterious transporter into his world where the blues is stripped to its most sparse elements and ghostly vocals hover over like a most pleasant hallucination. Lovely stuff. Flip the tape and there are two tracks from Russia's Love Cult who are totally new to me and start with the superbly titled 'Breadcrumb Pony Tail'. I'm really getting into the feel of this one with the bleeps and shimmering guitars that give it a wobbly liquid feel. Gradually things become more smothered in effects and it gets super trippy. Then 'Somn' brings the noise that really does it for me, lots of unrecognizable sounds being smothered by a big black fuzzy cloud. Both sides here are really superb and come very much recommended." Norman Records

"Bliss coming to you from solo artist Deep Magic and duo Love Cult. Both sides go to places of utter serenity, using slowly coagulating loops that shimmer into the forefront and slowly drip out and fade into your memory. Deep Magic going with more minimal and traditional instrumentation while Love Cult layers in found sounds and electronic noise into the mix." Incomplete Tales of Several Journeys